Hawks players Oscar Forman, left, and David Gruber recharged their batteries in New Zealand during the NBL off-season. Picture: ROBERT PEET
BASKETBALL
Nothing like a bit of out-of-town R&R to get ready for another 28-game NBL season.
Hawks forwards Dave Gruber and Oscar Forman fulfilled a long-held ambition to explore parts of New Zealand in the off-season. Gruber and Forman must have drunk something in the water over there because they were in excellent touch in the pre-season.
"We hiked, we saw glaciers, we did all sorts of stuff," Gruber said.
"It was good just to get away. I've been meaning to do that for a few years now. I finally got over there which was great.
"I definitely think it's necessary to get away and recharge the batteries. It's just good to have that balance. We're so focused on basketball for nine or 10 months of the year, so it's good to get away and free yourself up because you definitely feel refreshed when you come back.
"We also got into surfing in the off-season as a bit of cross-training. It was great. I'm still horrendous but I'm better than I used to be. I can at least get two feet on the board now."
